Activewear Apparel For Women That Can Be Taken Apart

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure relates to a convertible activewear apparel for women. The activewear apparel includes a first waist-hip piece which extends into a skirt layer to essentially the mid-hip area starting from a waistband, two second intermediate pieces, and a front intermediate piece and a back intermediate piece (3) which can be connected to one another and to the first waist-hip piece. The activewear apparel may also include a third shorts piece which may be connected to the first waist-hip piece.

The present invention relates to convertible activewear apparel forwomen. More specifically, the invention provides a skirt-shortscombination, i.e., a skort, that can be taken apart to be a skirt orjust shorts, which makes it easier to practice sports by adapting theclothing for women to the user's needs, where it is also possible tomodify the length of both the shorts and the skirt independently or whenboth are combined and worn.

On the market there are various activewear skirt models with built-inshort pants, or shorts, particularly intended for practicing sports suchas tennis or paddle tennis. However, these skirts with built-in shortsshare one and the same waistband, such that the skirt cannot be wornindependently of the shorts. Therefore, once the practice session ends,it is often necessary to change clothes entirely and put on a skirt or apair of shorts, which must be brought along for that purpose, which thediscomforts this entails.

The present invention solves this problem by providing a skirt-shortscombination or skort that can be taken apart to be a skirt or shortsindependently, i.e., a skort that can be taken apart. To that end, theskort is made up of first waist-hip piece, which extends to essentiallythe mid-hip area starting from the waist, two second intermediatepieces, a front intermediate piece and a back intermediate piece, whichcan be connected to one another and to the first waist-hip piece in thelower part thereof, as well as a third shorts piece, where said thirdshorts piece can be connected to the first waist-hip piece, and wherethe intermediate pieces can also be connected to the waist-hippiece/shorts piece combination, where they are all connected by suitableattachment means such as zippers, Velcro®-type detachable straps,buttons, hooks and eyes, automatic closures and the like.

Therefore, connecting the waist-hip piece and the front intermediatepiece and back intermediate piece allows defining a skirt. The length ofsaid skirt will depend on the length of the intermediate pieces, wheresaid length can be adjusted as desired by the user. On the other hand,connecting the waist-hip piece and the shorts piece allows definingshorts, the length of which, also dependent on the intermediate pieces,will be adjusted as desired by the user. Finally, attaching theintermediate piece to the waist-hip piece and shorts combinationdescribed above allows defining a skort. In turn, it is also possible toattach the intermediate pieces to also form two bags.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is described below based on three embodiments thereofcorresponding to a skirt, shorts and skort as explained above and inreference to the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of the independent pieces making up theskort;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of forming the skirt from the waist-hippiece and the intermediate pieces;

FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of forming the shorts from the waist-hippiece and shorts piece combination;

FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of the forming the combined skirt-shorts,or skort, from the waist-hip piece, the intermediate pieces and theshorts piece;

FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of two bags formed from the intermediatepieces.

DESCRIPTION

As seen in FIG. 1, the waist-hip piece (1), two intermediate pieces (2,3), a front intermediate piece (2) and a back intermediate piece (3),and a shorts piece (4) are shown.

The waist-hip piece (1) has a waistband (11) from which a skirt layerextends essentially to the mid-hip area. As shown, this skirt pieceincludes, in the lower area thereof, a first front attachment means (12)and corresponding second back attachment means (12′) for attaching othercombinable pieces, which extend transversely along the lowersemi-perimetral area of the layer, as well as other front attachmentmeans (13) and back attachment means (13′) arranged in parallel andslightly above the attachment means (12, 12′), likewise extendingtransversely along the front and back perimeters of the skirt layer. Thewaistband (11) can optionally include belt loops (14).

The intermediate pieces (2, 3) are two rectangular pieces the largerside of which corresponds with the front semi-perimeter of the skirtlayer of the waist-hip piece (1). These intermediate pieces (2, 3)include corresponding connection means on all their perimetral edges forconnection by means of their smaller sides (21, 21′, 31, 31′) and theirlarger sides (22, 22′, 32, 32′).

In turn, the shorts piece (4) consists of a waist and two legs, wherethe waist essentially corresponds with the length of the lowerperimetral edge of the waist-hip piece (1). This shorts piece (4)includes two perimetral front and back connection means (41, 41′) in thewaist thereof in correspondence with the front and back parts of theskirt layer of the waist-hip piece (1).

In the following description of the embodiments of the invention, theconnection means are illustrated by means of zippers, where saidattachment means are non-limiting and can be replaced with Velcro®-typedetachable straps, buttons, hooks and eyes, automatic closures and thelike, as well as combinations thereof.

FIG. 2 shows forming a skirt from the waist-hip piece (1) and theintermediate pieces (2, 3). In this case, the waist-hip piece (1) isattached to the front intermediate piece (2) and back intermediate piece(3) by means of connecting the zippers (13, 13′) of the waist-hip pieceand the zippers of the larger sides (22, 32) of each of the intermediatepieces (2, 3). The skirt layer can be closed by closing the zippers onthe smaller sides (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) of the intermediate pieces.The length of the skirt will depend on the height of the intermediatepieces, where said length can be adjusted as desired by the user, or byproviding more than two intermediate pieces, for example four or sixintermediate pieces, which increase the overall length of the skirt whenthey are connected to one another.

On the other hand, and in reference to FIG. 3, connecting the waist-hippiece (1) and the shorts piece (4) illustrates how to form shorts. In amanner similar to above, the waist-hip piece (1) is now attached to theshorts piece (4) by means of connecting the zippers (13, 13′) of thewaist-hip piece (1) to the zippers (41, 41′) of the shorts piece. Thelength of the shorts will depend on the length of the legs, to beadjusted to the user's taste. Optionally, the length of the shorts canalso be modified by providing in the lower area of the legs respectiveconnection means, such as zippers, cooperating with correspondingconnection means arranged in the upper and lower perimeters of pairs oftubular elements provided as a continuation of the legs (not shown inthe drawings).

The attachment of the intermediate pieces (2, 3) to the waist-hip piece(1) and shorts (4) combination allows forming a skort, as illustrated inFIG. 4. To that end, from the embodiment described above, where thewaist-hip piece (1) is connected to the shorts piece (4) by means of thezippers (41, 41′), instead of being connected to zippers (13, 13′) theshorts piece is now connected to zippers (12, 12′), and the intermediatepieces (2, 3) are attached to the waist-hip piece (1) by means of thezippers (13, 13′). Also in this case, the skirt layer is closed byclosing the zippers on the smaller sides (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) of theintermediate pieces.

The fabric that can be used to make all the mentioned pieces can vary incolor, type of fabric, drape, design, print, etc., so various skirt,shorts or skort models can be obtained according to the combinations ofselected fabrics, colors or prints. So, for example, by defining adifferent print and/or color for the intermediate pieces (2, 3),exchanging these intermediate pieces allows obtaining two skirts ofdifferent colors or prints.

In turn, attaching the intermediate pieces (2, 3) to furthermore formtwo bags is also possible, as shown in FIG. 5. The upper part shows arectangular bag obtained from the intermediate pieces (2, 3). To thatend, the intermediate pieces (2, 3) are superimposed on one another andconnected together by zipping the zippers (22, 22′) of the intermediatepiece (2) with the zippers (32, 32′) of the intermediate piece (3), andlikewise zipping the zippers (21, 21′) of the intermediate piece (2)with the zippers (31, 31′) of the intermediate piece (3). In this casethe bag is opened by unzipping the upper zippers (22, 32) of theintermediate pieces (2, 3). A bag handle which can be attached by meansof corresponding snap hooks at the ends thereof to the upper terminalsof the zippers (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) can also be provided. Likewise,folding the bag thus obtained and changing the attachment of the baghandle to the terminals of the zippers (22, 32) and (22′, 32′) resultsin a small bag, as shown in the lower part of FIG. 5. In turn, the baghandle can be used as a belt for the embodiments of the appareldescribed above, for which purpose the waist-hip piece (1) has beltloops (14). Also in this case, given that the bag consists of theintermediate pieces (2, 3), a different print and/or color for theintermediate pieces (2, 3) and interchanging them allows obtaining bagsof different colors or prints.

What is claimed is:
 1. A convertible activewear apparel for womencomprising a first waist-hip piece (1) which extends into a skirt layerto essentially the mid-hip area starting from a waistband (11), twosecond intermediate pieces (2, 3) comprising a front intermediate piece(2) and a back intermediate piece (3), which are connected to oneanother and to the first waist-hip piece (1) in the lower part thereof,as well as a third shorts piece (4), where said third shorts piece (4)is connected to the first waist-hip piece (1) in the lower part thereof,and where the intermediate pieces (2, 3) are connected to the waist-hippiece (1)/shorts piece (4) combination.
 2. The convertible activewearapparel for women according to claim 1, wherein the first waist-hippiece (1) has, in the lower area of the skirt layer, a first frontattachment means (12) and a second back attachment means (12′), whichextend transversely along a lower semi-perimetral area of the layer, aswell as front attachment means (13) and back attachment means (13′)arranged in parallel and slightly above the attachment means (12, 12′),likewise extending transversely along the front and back semi-perimetersof the skirt layer.
 3. The convertible activewear apparel for womenaccording to claim 2, wherein the intermediate pieces (2, 3) comprisetwo rectangular pieces, the larger side of which corresponds with thefront semi-perimeter of the skirt layer of the waist-hip piece (1) andinclude corresponding connection means on all their perimetral edges forconnection by means of their smaller sides (21, 21′, 31, 31′) and theirlarger sides (22, 22′, 32, 32′).
 4. The convertible activewear apparelfor women according to claim 3, wherein the shorts piece (4), comprisesa waist and two legs, where the waist essentially corresponds with thelength of the lower perimetral edge of the waist-hip piece (1), includestwo connection means comprising a front perimetral connection means (41)and a back perimetral connection means (41′) in the waist thereof incorrespondence with the front and back parts of the skirt layer of thewaist-hip piece (1).
 5. The convertible activewear apparel for womenaccording to claim 4, wherein the connection means and the attachmentmeans are selected from the group consisting of zippers, Velcro®-typedetachable straps, buttons, hooks and eyes and automatic closures. 6.The convertible activewear apparel for women according to claim 5,wherein the connection means and attachment means are zippers.
 7. Theconvertible activewear apparel for women according to claim 6, whereinthe activewear apparel is a skirt made by attaching the waist-hip piece(1) to the front intermediate piece (2) and back intermediate piece (3)by means of connecting the zippers (13, 13′) of the waist-hip piece andthe zippers of the larger sides (22, 32) of each of the intermediatepieces (2, 3), the skirt layer being closed by the zippers of thesmaller sides (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) of the intermediate pieces.
 8. Theconvertible activewear apparel for women according to claim 7, whereinthe length of the skirt depends on the height of the intermediate pieces(2, 3), or in that it includes more than two intermediate pieces (2, 3)which increase the overall length of the skirt when they are connectedto one another.
 9. The convertible activewear apparel for womenaccording to claim 6, wherein the activewear apparel is a pair of shortsformed by attaching the waist-hip piece (1) and the shorts piece (4) bymeans of connecting the zippers (13, 13′) of the waist-hip piece (1) tothe zippers (41, 41′) of the shorts piece.
 10. The convertibleactivewear apparel for women according to claim 9, wherein the length ofthe shorts depends on the length of the legs, or can be modified byproviding in the lower area of the legs, a respective connection meanscooperating with a corresponding connection means arranged in the upperand lower perimeters of pairs of tubular elements provided as acontinuation of the legs.
 11. The convertible activewear apparel forwomen according to claim 6, wherein the activewear apparel it is a skortmade by attaching the waist-hip piece (1) and the shorts piece (4) bymeans of connecting the zippers (12, 12′) of the waist-hip piece (1) tothe zippers (41, 41′) of the shorts piece (4) and the intermediatepieces (2, 3) are attached to the waist-hip piece (1) by means of thezippers (13, 13′), the skirt layer being closed by the zippers of thesmaller sides (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) of the intermediate pieces. 12.The convertible activewear apparel for women according to claim 3,wherein the activewear apparel is a rectangular bag made up of theintermediate pieces (2, 3) superimposed on one another and connectedtogether through the connection means (22, 22′) of the intermediatepiece (2) with the connection means (32, 32′) of the intermediate piece(3), and through the connection means (21, 21′) of the intermediatepiece (2) with the connection means (31, 31′) of the intermediate piece(3), with an opening defined by disconnecting the connection means (22,32) of the intermediate pieces (2, 3), where a handle which can beattached by means of corresponding snap hooks at the ends thereof toupper terminals of the connection means (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) isprovided.
 13. The convertible activewear apparel for women according toclaim 3, wherein the convertible activewear apparel is a bag made up ofthe intermediate pieces (2, 3) superimposed on one another and connectedtogether through the connection means (22, 22′) of the intermediatepiece (2) with the connection means (32, 32′) of the intermediate piece(3), and through the connection means (21, 21′) of the intermediatepiece (2) with the connection means (31, 31′) of the intermediate piece(3) and by folding, where a handle which can be attached by means ofcorresponding snap hooks at the ends thereof to terminals of theconnection means (22, 32) and (22′, 32′) is provided.
 14. Theconvertible activewear apparel for women according to claim 3, whereinthe activewear apparel is a skirt made by attaching the waist-hip piece(1) to the front intermediate piece (2) and back intermediate piece (3)by means of connecting the attachment means (13, 13′) of the waist-hippiece and the connection means of the larger sides (22, 32) of each ofthe intermediate pieces (2, 3), the skirt layer being closed by theconnection means of the smaller sides (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) of theintermediate pieces.
 15. The convertible activewear apparel for womenaccording to claim 14, wherein the length of the skirt depends on theheight of the intermediate pieces (2, 3), or in that it includes morethan two intermediate pieces (2, 3) which increase the overall length ofthe skirt when they are connected to one another.
 16. The convertibleactivewear apparel for women according to claim 4, wherein theactivewear apparel is a pair of shorts formed by attaching the waist-hippiece (1) and the shorts piece (4) by means of connecting the attachmentmeans (13, 13′) of the waist-hip piece (1) to the connection means (41,41′) of the shorts piece.
 17. The convertible activewear apparel forwomen according to claim 16, wherein the length of the shorts depends onthe length of the legs, or can be modified by providing in the lowerarea of the legs, a respective connection means cooperating with acorresponding connection means arranged in the upper and lowerperimeters of pairs of tubular elements provided as a continuation ofthe legs.
 18. The convertible activewear apparel for women according toclaim 4, wherein the activewear apparel it is a skort made by attachingthe waist-hip piece (1) and the shorts piece (4) by means of connectingthe attachment means (12, 12′) of the waist-hip piece (1) to theconnection means (41, 41′) of the shorts piece (4) and the intermediatepieces (2, 3) are attached to the waist-hip piece (1) by the attachmentmeans (13, 13′), the skirt layer being closed by the connection means ofthe smaller sides (21, 31) and (21′, 31′) of the intermediate pieces.19. The convertible activewear apparel for women according to claim 6,wherein the activewear apparel is a rectangular bag made up of theintermediate pieces (2, 3) superimposed on one another and connectedtogether through the zippers (22, 22′) of the intermediate piece (2)with the zippers (32, 32′) of the intermediate piece (3), and throughthe zippers (21, 21′) of the intermediate piece (2) with the zippers(31, 31′) of the intermediate piece (3), with an opening defined byunzipping the upper zippers (22, 32) of the intermediate pieces (2, 3),where a handle which can be attached by means of corresponding snaphooks at the ends thereof to upper terminals of the zippers (21, 31) and(21′, 31′) is provided.
 20. The convertible activewear apparel for womenaccording to claim 6, wherein the convertible activewear apparel is abag made up of the intermediate pieces (2, 3) superimposed on oneanother and connected together through the zippers (22, 22′) of theintermediate piece (2) with the zippers (32, 32′) of the intermediatepiece (3), and through the zippers (21, 21′) of the intermediate piece(2) with the zippers (31, 31′) of the intermediate piece (3) and byfolding, where a handle which can be attached by means of correspondingsnap hooks at the ends thereof to terminals of the zippers (22, 32) and(22′, 32′) is provided.